Jewell Hooper McAdams

Jewell Hooper McAdams died peacefully at home in Columbia, SC on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2020 at the age of 96.

Born Jewell Maxine Hooper in 1924 on a tobacco farm near Mebane NC, she was the daughter of John W. Hooper and Lela Reid Hooper.  She was the youngest of nine children and known by the nickname “Ned” within the family.  She was the last survivor among her brothers and sisters and missed them terribly,

She married the late Jahu C. McAdams in 1946 soon after his discharge from the Navy following WWII.  He grew up on a tobacco farm just a few miles from hers and they knew each other all their lives.  While in the service he sent her money for an engagement ring, and as a thrifty person she liked to say that after buying it there was money left over.  They were the very definition of the Greatest Generation.  She was a widow for 40 years.

They had three children: the late Andrew J. McAdams (survived by his wife Dede); Ronald K. McAdams; and Nancy M. Havens (Brent).  She has nine grandchildren (Renee Smith, Julie Ann James, Andrew McAdams; Justin McAdams, William McAdams, Charlotte McAdams; Reese Havens, Bess Swift, Rob Havens) and 9 great grandchildren to date.

She was the spirit of conviviality, active in her garden club, various bridge clubs (she was a strong player!) and square dance group with Jahu.  She was beloved by her friends and neighbors.

She was a Christian and active member of North Trenholm Baptist Church for 55 years.  She loved her Sunday school class and missed being able to attend in her final years.

The funeral will be held at the Rich & Thompson funeral chapel in Burlington, NC, at 11 a.m. on January 23, 2021.  She will rest next to her husband at Mt. Zion Christian Church near Mebane NC.  A brief ceremony will be held graveside after the funeral.

Mrs. McAdams requested that in lieu of flowers a donation may be made to the American Cancer  Society in honor of Jahu.

One of her grandchildren wrote: "Thinking about my grandmother, Jewell McAdams, who passed away this morning at the age of 96. She lived a wise and meaningful life. Grandma Jewell will always live on through the stories she told us of her childhood on the farm and memories of the deviled eggs she could make better than anyone else."

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